A Reflection on Ernest Hartmann's Equation Between the Central Image in Dreams and the Objective Correlative in Poetry

Ernest Hartmann observed a close similarity between the central image in dreams (an image that can effectively represent the emotional content of a dream) and the objective correlative (defined by T.S. Eliot as "a set of objects, a situation, a chain of events which shall be the formula of that particular emotion"). This article argues that Hartmann's equation between central image and objective correlative is amply valid and can shed new light on the relationship between the esthetic experience and the dreaming experience. For this purpose, 3 points are underlined. First, the objective correlative is characterized by its multifaceted dream-like basis. Second, in light of the central role that Eliot attributed to the Italian medieval poets of the "Dolce Stil Nuovo," the historical significance of a dream reported by Dante is discussed. Third, Hartmann's equation can assume different aspects, especially regarding the either explicit or implicit (or partly implicit) relationship between objective correlative and dreaming. Among the numerous instances offered by cultures that are widely separated by space and time, the article considers examples taken from T.S. Eliot's "Ash Wednesday", Guido Cavalcanti's Sonnet XVIII, Dante's "Vita Nova", the Book of Genesis, Lucretius's "De Rerum Natura", a waka on the theme "Spring" by Fujiwara no Teika, and the lyrics of a song by Franco Battiato. The validity of Hartmann's equation suggests that the reference to dreaming, being common to both the art creator and the art receiver, plays a latent but basic role in the esthetic experience.